Citigroup has reportedly selected its preferred bidders for its consumer banking assets in Asia, has part of its broader plans announced earlier this year to exit retail markets where it lacks scale.
Citi has chosen its preferred bidder for its consumer banking assets in various Asian markets including Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, China and the Philippines, according to a «Bloomberg» report citing unnamed sources.
This is part of its plan announced in April this year to exit 13 retail markets including 10 in Asia Pacific.
The National Australia Bank has been the first in the region to cut a deal, agreeing to buy Citi’s Australian consumer banking unit in a deal valued at around A$1.2 billion ($880 million).
Southeast Asia
Earlier this month, the Union Bank of the Philippines was reportedly selected as Citi’s preferred bidder for its Filipino consumer banking assets in a potential deal valued at around $1 billion.
Elsewhere in Southeast Asia, the American bank’s top picks include Mitsubishi UFJ-owned Bank of Ayudhya for its Thai assets in an estimated $2 billion sale; UOB for its Indonesian assets in a potential multi-hundred million dollar deal; and Standard Chartered for its Malaysian assets in another multi-hundred million dollar sale.
Greater China, India
For its China consumer banking assets, Taiwan’s Fubon Financial Holding is the buyer of choice in a deal that could raise about $100 to $200 million.
No preferred bidders were named for assets in India and Taiwan which will take longer for a deal to materialize.
No final decisions have been made with deliberations ongoing and other bidders still interested in the various Asian markets, the report added.
